Csmithbass
New member
Gives me hope. My wife’s 95 2nd gen just blew a gasket. Hydrolocked with coolant, now cleared out. Fortunately everything seems to be moving. Looking forward to the work.
Repair head gasket, replace engine, or replace truck?
- Thread starter backcountrylimo
- Start date
Adamdmc
New member
I recently repaired a blown spark plug and am questioning what oil I should be putting in the crankcase. Right now I'm running Royal Purple 5w-30, but for some reason I feel like I'm just throwing money away. Also, it's kinda hard to find right now in the 5qt jugs. What do ya'll recommend? Probably doing oil change tomorrow morning.
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thennen
New member
I've used non-OEM parts successfully as well. However, I do know that OEM is always good, and aftermarket not always good.
As for the timing chain guides (22R-E too?), I've owned one 1988 4Runner with a 22R-E and never did anything to the timing chain area. Parted ways with it at 305k. I don't know what type of guide it had.
As for the timing chain guides (22R-E too?), I've owned one 1988 4Runner with a 22R-E and never did anything to the timing chain area. Parted ways with it at 305k. I don't know what type of guide it had.
Put some "air quotes" around that 40K mile thing. They all claim to have very low miles, but usually, they're not tracked that carefully, they just get a container full of motors from Japan. And rely on the myth that Japanese cars are not driven much, obsessively maintained, and then junked for no reason at all with practically no wear and tear on them.
gamefreakgc
Elite Member
Royal Purple makes solid products. I had a harsh shift between 1-2 on my transmission and switching to their fluids smoothed it out so nice! Their injector cleaners are also the best I've ever used, I can actually document a change in idle smoothness where the other stuff (Lucas, Techron, etc.) I have no idea if they even work.
The question then becomes, are you receiving any benefit from running Royal Purple motor oil? That is a hard question to answer. Our engines don't burn oil, don't leak too bad and don't throw rods so there may not be much of a benefit other than reduced changing intervals and peace of mind. It's only roughly $15 more each oil change so perhaps that alone is worth the extra cost. I do have to say that their bearing load tests are very impressive though. The oil will actually polish and smooth the bearing surface, not scratch it!
RacePointBeachBum
New member
I'm in the same boat!
I have owned my Y2K SR5 from 42K it now has 220K on the dial. I have religiously maintained this vehicle. 5K oil changes with Mobile 1, timing belts, tune ups, tires and this January put a brand new rear end in. Yes you read that right we had zero luck finding a used rear end that had the 4:30 ratio with electric shift so I bit the bullet and went new. She is not my daily driver but I love her with all my heart. I had the radiator replaced a month ago and noticed when I got home on my receipt the garage changed my oil and dumped crappy 'synthetic blend 5/20" into it. I started it a few days later and it smoked and I tell you I flipped. This truck has been solid in the 17 years I have owned it and now it looks like I will be replacing the head gasket. I ripped into the garage that did this but with the age/#s they claim they did nothing wrong and of course... I'm a girl so they think I am stupid. I have a friend who manages a Ford dealer and called a favor, he did a compression test and she is firing fine. That doesn't solve the issue of the smoke and it only smokes if I don't drive it every day. I refuse to pay dealer prices and with the Covid BS everyone is looking to recoup their losses on lost business. I know I'm not going to get out of this one cheap but having put the money into the rear end, frame and recent tune up I'm having a hard time justifying dumping or parting this old girl out.
Wish me luck - I've got two places to contact for the rebuild - hoping one over the other since its a mechanic who has a regular job and has worked on cars his whole life. I can leave it for weeks if he needs it as I have the kid sister on the road "08 Avalon"... classy lady and all but there's something about climbing behind the wheel of the 4Runner you don't get from a sedan.
I'm in Western Massachusetts if anyone has a good mechanic they can recommend! :brick:
I have owned my Y2K SR5 from 42K it now has 220K on the dial. I have religiously maintained this vehicle. 5K oil changes with Mobile 1, timing belts, tune ups, tires and this January put a brand new rear end in. Yes you read that right we had zero luck finding a used rear end that had the 4:30 ratio with electric shift so I bit the bullet and went new. She is not my daily driver but I love her with all my heart. I had the radiator replaced a month ago and noticed when I got home on my receipt the garage changed my oil and dumped crappy 'synthetic blend 5/20" into it. I started it a few days later and it smoked and I tell you I flipped. This truck has been solid in the 17 years I have owned it and now it looks like I will be replacing the head gasket. I ripped into the garage that did this but with the age/#s they claim they did nothing wrong and of course... I'm a girl so they think I am stupid. I have a friend who manages a Ford dealer and called a favor, he did a compression test and she is firing fine. That doesn't solve the issue of the smoke and it only smokes if I don't drive it every day. I refuse to pay dealer prices and with the Covid BS everyone is looking to recoup their losses on lost business. I know I'm not going to get out of this one cheap but having put the money into the rear end, frame and recent tune up I'm having a hard time justifying dumping or parting this old girl out.
Wish me luck - I've got two places to contact for the rebuild - hoping one over the other since its a mechanic who has a regular job and has worked on cars his whole life. I can leave it for weeks if he needs it as I have the kid sister on the road "08 Avalon"... classy lady and all but there's something about climbing behind the wheel of the 4Runner you don't get from a sedan.
I'm in Western Massachusetts if anyone has a good mechanic they can recommend! :brick:
Sounds like you still haven't confirmed that it needs head gaskets. If your compression test was good, then I would suggest a cylinder leak down test. It could be leaking valve stem seals allowing the thinner oil through easier.
pluton
Senior Member
This was my thought as well.
Mushroom_Toy
New member
I personally would drop in another engine. It is a bit of money if you don't do it yourself, however as long as the rest of the runner is good as far as frame, suspension and trans wise it will last a long time, and is still cheaper and will have more reliability that a new car.
texadelphia
New member
Same.
Based on your description, I'm not sure what is pointing to a head gasket failure here, especially with good compression test results. Is the truck overheating or losing coolant or oil? Is the smoke white or grey? Is the smoke constant or just on start up?
I'd think the thinner oil could be getting past the valve seals which would cause some smoking after sitting a few days on initial startup or you might be getting some ring blow-by which could be causing some smoking.
I'd consider getting the leak down test done, put the correct weight of oil back in, and run it a few times to see if the smoking goes away while watching the temperature gauge like a hawk.
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plcfcng
Member
Something that can point you in a direction is a simple cooling system pressure tester that you can rent for free at some parts stores. I think it is best to test the system when it's cold so check it after the system is stone cold. When you pump up the system let pump let it sit and see if the needle drops. Some tools leak a little giving you a false reading but to check it you can try it on another vehicle to see if the tool is faulty. If the pressure holds that's a good sign if the pressure drops and your system has been using coolant and you see no external leaks hitting the ground or a wet carpet on the passenger side then there is a very good chance that the head gasket has gone bad. I would lean toward a head gasket job including a head reconditioning. If you do a engine swap unless you have a good history you maybe looking at doing a head gasket job on that engine. Another thing that a DIY person can do is when the engine is cold you can start the engine if the steams (not smoke ) and is more than just condensation in the muffler you can turn the engine off before it gets warm then pull the spark plugs if to see if they are wet with coolant. Or stated earlier a leak down test is works to the other methods allow you to do the checks without a leak down tester.
:rockon:
:rockon:
